A tongue-in-cheek homage to Super Villain Fu Manchu
delivered by Harald Helmut Weiss

The small, lanky boy, standing in the foyer of the local cinema, has a fascinated look on his face.  His eyes seem to glow as he stares longingly through his thick spectacles.  For days now, he has been drawn to this place.  Again and again he returns, hypnotized by the seductive images on the posters on the wall before him, advertising what promises to be an enthralling film.

A woman is in chains, her dress totally shredded to pieces, with her naked back, exposed.  Standing in front of her, unmoved and emotionless, is a man with talon-like nails and an extremely long moustache.  Apparently Chinese, apparently an evil Chinese ... What fate will befall this woman?

For the enraptured boy, that will be hidden forever for alongside the enticing posters stand the merciless words: PG 16. He is just eleven and absolutely certain that the powerful witch in the box office, that mighty mistress of tickets, will know this instantly.

The Face of Fu Manchu – how he longs to see that film. Eventually, finally, at last, he dares and asks her for a copy of the illustrated film guide.  His voice shivers with excitement and trepidation, his hands are shaking as he puts the required coins onto the counter.  His yearning wish is granted!. His face lights up with delight – suddenly the witch is transformed into a fairy godmother and he clutches his precious booklet close to him, as if magically bestowed.

This boy was me. And I still own that film guide.

On 6 August 1965, The Face Of Fu Manchu premiered in Germany (German title: Ich, Dr. Fu Man Chu) – in a time where film posters and lobby cards were the most effective way of promoting motion pictures. They had to be lookers. Instant attractants for people passing by. Promises of pleasure, but subtly done, as since 1953, the Voluntary Self-Regulation of the Film Industry (Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle der Filmwirtschaft, FSK) was on alert that there was not an abundance of breasts, blood and bludgeoning. This vitalized the creativity of the poster artists, though.

In the case of The Face it worked. Many people fell under the spell of the enigmatic Dr. Fu Manchu and were seduced to the cinema. Fortunately, there were not only onlookers (like Yours Truly), but paying guests as well.

In the weekly magazine film-echo / FILMWOCHE (the official mouthpiece of opinion of the organisation of German movie theatres) owners of motion picture houses most often rated the influx of visitors as excellent. A respectable success considering that there were about 400 new releases during the season of 1965 / 66. After all, both another villain called Goldfinger and Comrade Don Camillo were vieing for the moviegoer’s attention. And, of course, there was The Ringer again.